Ok, I’d mentioned in my da post that I would show you guys the letter that I wrote to the po after he sent me his card.
I thought maybe it might be of interest.
I never heard back from him, I guess I got my point across.
Thank you for the kind words and sentiments. Terry and I want you to know that we think of you as family. You had mentioned that you think of me as a kid sister that you don’t want to lose, I certainly don’t want to lose you as my brother. For me you’ll always be my brother, despite what comes of this.
Thank you for your offer to sit down and talk, but I am going to decline. I will give you my email address and if you would like you can send me your questions and I will try to answer as quickly and honestly as I can.
These last few months have been difficult. My family has been repeatedly requesting answers from me as to why I’m no longer attending meetings. At times, these conversations became fairly heated. I have been pushed to do something that I sincerely did not want to do. What they really wanted was for me to sit down and talk to the elders about my problems. I have my own personal reasons for not doing so, I hope that hasn’t offended you.
Paulette called me Halloween day and left a message that she had called you. It was then that I realized that they weren’t going to let this go and the time had come to take care of matters.
The reasons I have for leaving the Witnesses is a bit more complicated than what I laid out in my letter. I tried to pen all of the experience, but truthfully it was becoming more of a book rather then a letter. I doubted people would read that.
If you would like I could complete that and then let you read it.
One of the other reasons I refrained from going too far into depth has already been demonstrated: It is my understanding that my family members have burnt their letters. I figured that writing a hundred page letter might be cathartic for me, but by page 3 they would already have the grill going.
I bring this up so that you understand ever more clearly that the decision I had made to stop attending meetings was a matter I had taken seriously.
What I did not include in the letter were the scriptural errors that I had found early on. Those were what piqued my attention and caused me to keep reading the Scriptures without the aid of the w and a and further to eventually investigate the publications with the intent of making sure that all was in alignment with what the bible taught.
My research of the publications turned up things that were not only not in alignment with bible truth, but also were incredibly hypocritical, in light of the WTS constant barrage of criticism against Christendom.
When I talk about reading the bible without the aid of the publications, I am meaning not only not
using the publications to explain matters that are unclear, I am meaning not allowing them to interpret or influence how the Scriptures are to be understood.
By so doing, I found several passages in the bible that had a meaning that was much different from what the WTS has taught in the past and continues to teach.
There were a few more meetings that I had made after these discoveries, during those meetings I found a few things very interesting that I thought I would share with you.
One of the things I found, was how often the WTS impresses on the minds of the witnesses the concept of the Organization. More often then not witnesses are reading and hearing that being loyal to the Organization equals being loyal to God. That is not in alignment with bible teaching. The writings of men are not equal to the writings of the bible. All that does not come from the Scriptures needs to be critically examined.
If we are told constantly that being loyal to the Organization equals being loyal to God, then we slowly acclimate our minds to believing that what comes from the Organization is coming from God. If we keep taking that for granted, then we stop reading the publications with a view to making sure that it is indeed the proper food at the proper time and we just accept whatever they give us. When a person continues to do that, they don’t know whether or not they are receiving spiritually healthy food and can unknowingly become spiritually malnourished. Think how often the witnesses are taught that the faithful and discreet slave are providing the proper food at the proper time, how thankful they should be. How often do witnesses carefully examine what they are being fed, before consuming it?
Another thing I found, something that even Terry made mention to me, was the lack of conversation about Jesus Christ. Often witnesses speak of Jehovah, however, there is really not much mention of our Lord Jesus Christ, except perhaps around the time of the Memorial. Browse through the pages of the publications and you will find some startling things. The focus tends to be on first the Organization and then Jehovah. There is not much focus on Jesus. That’s kind of funny considering that he said we were to be witnesses of Him, we are to be called Christians for a reason. It is to Him that our knee should bow, He is our King.
During one of the last meetings I attended, Suzanne made a comment at a meeting about Jesus, that was so beautiful it brought tears to my eyes. It had hit me, that more often then not, our conversations at the meetings do not center around Him.
My bible reading, coupled with that which I was seeing and hearing in the Kingdom Hall, was disturbing. It was a very difficult decision to make, since all that I have known is within the confines of the Organization, including my family.
But the worst of it is this, during that time, that I simply stopped going to meetings and I kept my mouth shut, I was ashamed of myself.
Ashamed that I was more concerned about what men thought of me, rather then my Creator.
More concerned about losing my friends and family, rather then the blessings of God.
I don’t want to lose you as my brother, but I know that you have to do what you believe is right.
I hope that you can understand that I too have to do, what I believe is right.
These are yet a few more reasons why, Mark I no longer wish to be considered one of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
If you have still have questions, I will answer.
This is my email address:
[email protected]
Much Christian Love
Since I never heard from him, and the phone calls and drop ins stopped, I figured I made my point and it was announced.
Meagan